The latest figures from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) reveal that the import value of fruit and vegetables in August reached $169 million, bringing the first eight-month figure to nearly $1 billion, up 93.7 per cent year-on-year.

The import value of fruit reached $809 million in the first eight months, more than double the figure in the same period of 2016, while vegetable imports were estimated at $190 million, up 34.6 per cent.

Thailand is still the largest source of fruit and vegetables, with a share of 61.8 per cent, followed by China with 16 per cent.

According to Mr. Hoang Trung, Director General of the Plant Protection Department at MARD, 90 per cent of Thai fruit is exported to Vietnam and then re-exported to China. He added that, in recent years, trade negotiations with Thailand have achieved positive results, so more fruit from Vietnam can be exported to the country and vice-versa. At present, Vietnam exports about 9,000 to 10,000 tons of fruit to Thailand each year.

Fruit and vegetables from Thailand imported into Vietnam are growing in volume, as the level of trust among Vietnamese in Thai products has been rising over the years, including in tech goods, household goods, and food.

As Thai retail giants have acquired retail networks in Vietnam and the 100 per cent tariff on goods imported from Thailand has been removed, the country’s products have many opportunities in Vietnam.

In 2015 and 2016, two large retailers in Vietnam - Big C and Metro - were acquired by Thailand’s Central Group and Berli Jucker (BJC).

The prices of Thai fruit and vegetables are also on par with domestic equivalents.